"We don't have a royal family, so we love this one," said Evie Engram, 18, from Texas.

"All my friends are very big Kate fans. Everyone wants to be her - she's just a regular girl who ended up marrying a prince."

The former Kate Middleton is the first commoner to marry a future British king since 1660. Though her parents are multi-millionaires from a party supplies business, her ancestors were coal miners rather than aristocrats.

Visitors from countries where the Queen is head of state - which along with Britain include 15 realms such as Australia, Canada and New Zealand - were also broadly enthusiastic.

"We've been getting updates every morning on Canadian TV and it's great to see that it's a worldwide affair, that everyone's curious about what's happening," said David Wyatt from Toronto, who was holidaying in London with his wife and three young daughters.

"We were wondering whether we were going to be here in London when it happened, and it's wonderful. My family were empire loyalists in Canada and my father's from England. We're proud Canadians."

Connie Sourlatzis, a 30-year-old from Melbourne, said William and Kate had "brought some life back into the royal family".